Robert "Shoofly" Shufelt "A Cool Drink Near the ♢2" Signed Western Lithograph, 1979

Pencil-signed Western lithograph by Robert "Shoofly" Shufelt, titled A Cool Drink Near the ♢2 in the lower left margin and signed and dated ©1979 within the image at lower right. The composition captures a packer astride his mount in a rocky desert arroyo, reins slack as the horse lowers its head to drink from a shallow stream while a loaded pack mule waits patiently behind. The draftsmanship is meticulous throughout — ocotillo and creosote along the canyon walls, the weave of the saddle blankets, the worn leather of the packsaddle, and the play of light across water-polished stone. That Shufelt rendered all of this in graphite — then translated it to lithographic sepia on cream stock — is a reminder of what made him one of the most technically demanding Western artists of his generation.

Issued as a promotional print "Compliments of Mutual Savings, A Division of First Federal," signed a second time in pencil in the lower right margin beneath the image. The "♢2" in the title likely refers to the historic ♢2 Ranch. Unframed.

Robert "Shoofly" Shufelt (b. 1935) was born in Champaign, Illinois, and trained at the University of Illinois and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago before building a career as a commercial illustrator. He relocated to Arizona in 1976 and later to New Mexico, immersing himself in the working ranch culture that became his lifelong subject. Shufelt is renowned above all for his graphite draftsmanship — an exacting, labor-intensive technique through which he achieved tonal depth and atmospheric presence that most artists pursue in paint. His work has been exhibited at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum and the Desert Caballeros Western Museum, among other institutions. His honors include the Great American Cowboy Award (2005), New Mexico Artist of the Year (2007), and the New Mexico Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts (2014). This 1979 lithograph lands at a formative moment: the year after his move west, when the ranching world he had just entered was still entirely new to him — and his eye was sharpest for it.

CONDITION

Very Good with no remarkable damage. Paper is clean and bright with a crisp impression and clear pencil signature in the margin. Minor handling wear consistent with an unframed print of this age.

DIMENSIONS / SPECIFICATIONS

• Overall Sheet: 16" × 20"
• Visible Image: 12-1/2" × 17-3/4"
• Medium: Lithograph on paper
• Artist: Robert "Shoofly" Shufelt
• Date: ©1979
• Title: "A Cool Drink Near the ♢2"
• Signature: Pencil-signed lower right margin; signed and dated within the image
• Publisher Notation: "Compliments of Mutual Savings, A Division of First Federal"
• Presentation: Unframed